Intimacy With Daddy: Be Encouraged

Sometimes we allow doubt and fear to reign over us because we do not understand the nature and character of our God. Yahweh is at heart a father, our father. He is not a failed father. He is not distracted or self-centered. He has not walked away from his children, abandoning them to some impoverished destiny. He is not abusive nor manipulative.

Our Father, daddy, is attentive to his children. We are his focus. He never takes his eye off of us and is always at hand to rescue us from our own foolishness. He guides, protects and loves us through his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Just as he formed a nation from Abraham, he has formed a new nation; a people who were not a people and he has called us his own. We have been adopted through the sacrifice of his Son Jesus. Because of the blood of Jesus we are now fully his and he is responsible for our care.

When we look to his heart for Israel we can better understand his heart for us. Through the prophet Isaiah, Father told his people:

Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine. (Isaiah 43:1)

Hear the assurance in that, "You are mine". But this is Israel and we are the Church; does it really mean that we are his? Yes, because we have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, the Son, Jesus Christ. All that we were as the enemy of Father has been washed away and we have been redeemed from our sin so that we are made holy and justified, now adopted and set into the family of Father. He has not done this with one massive sweep of his hand of grace but instead has called us each individually, called by name to have that grace applied individually. He knows us intimately and he says, "You are mine".

Now understand what this means. So often we read from the psalmist "You are my God" and we echo that proclamation with them. In saying this we are saying that we belong to him, understanding our responsibilities as the children of Father, such as obedience, but we also accept the benefits. I don't know where you are in your life right now but I want you to be encouraged by just one these benefits:

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you. (v. 2)

One of the simple benefits is that he is with us. We have it even better than the Israelites because we are possessed by the Spirit of Jesus. He abides in us and we in him. He is with us wherever we go and experiences whatever we experience. He is our protector even in the worse possible days. It doesn't say he will prevent us from going through the waters or the fires but he promises that we will go through, we will make it, that the waters will not overwhelm us and the flames will not burn us. Be greatly encouraged:

For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior. (v. 3)

Daddy has you. He has you in his arms at all times. You are precious to him and he is occupied with you all the time. He doesn't get weary of you, he doesn't take a nap, he doesn't get busy with something else; he is always busy with you. Sometimes I think we fall short in understanding just how much he loves us and how intimate we are with him. Jesus prayed that we would have a full understanding of this intimacy:

that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, (John 17:21)

The Trinity is a great mystery to us but one thing is not a mystery, that Jesus brought us into an incredibly intimate relationship within this Trinity; that we are one with Yahweh. Father knows you, he knows you by name and you are his.

The most assuring part of your day today should be knowing that you are his; you are a child of Father; he has called you to him, redeemed by the Son, he called you by name and said you belong to him. Rejoice! I will tell you again, Rejoice! Praise his holy name. Dance, sing, lift up holy hands because you are possessed of the Spirit, loved by Jesus and belong to Father. What an incredible place to be. Forget about the waters, do not worry about the fires, because Father has told you to not be afraid. Instead, Rejoice! because you are his.

He Gave Himself Completely So You Could Be Completely God's

Your word is the truth. So let this truth make them completely yours. (John 17:17)

The things you think you need to make your life complete, you don't really need. What we really need is food and clothes, and even these Jesus told us not to worry about. Shelter would be good, some companionship but Jesus said that not even he had a place to lay his head.

Truth be told, our priorities are in a mess. Kingdom values are all mixed up with earthly values. It is hilarious to hear how much they say it costs to raise a child today. Sure, if you are going to buy them all over-priced name brands and fall for all the marketing gimmicks of food and toys. All we are doing is re-enforcing the values of this world in the minds of our children. According to the experts, I would have to be a millionaire to raise the 11 children who share my name. 

It is when we are lost in these wrong values that the value of the highly important gets lost. How are you sanctified, set a part from this world, for God's purpose? By the gospel of Jesus Christ. God's Word is truth and by this Word, the truth that Jesus brought forward, we are made completely God's. Hear Jesus' prayer:

Father, I don’t ask you to take my followers out of the world, but keep them safe from the evil one. They don’t belong to this world, and neither do I. (John 17:15-16)

We don't belong. Look at your credit card bill and repeat those words, I don't belong. Look at your long term goals for your life, your family and repeat the words, I don't belong. Look at your attitude toward your boss, your neighbours and repeat those words, I don't belong. When you are standing in a crowd, is there anything about you that let's people know, you don't belong?

We are in this world but not of it. We don't belong. We are not here for our benefit, for our pleasure, for our self-seeking, but because we have been given a mission. We don't belong. The gospel of Jesus Christ, God's Word, has sanctified us, set us a part for his purpose, not our own. We don't belong.

I am sending them into the world, just as you sent me. I have given myself completely for their sake, so that they may belong completely to the truth. (John 17:18-19)

That stings a bit. Jesus gave himself completely so that we could belong to God completely. How does your life reflect this truth? Are we living to honour the price Jesus paid? Does our living demonstrate that we belong to God completely, or are we living as part-time warriors?

Sanctified.

 

Good Morning Monday

Do you know what always greets me Monday morning, besides the cat? Emptiness. Doubt. Fear. Worry. Anxiety. Discouragement. Maybe you are surprised by that. Maybe you know exactly what I mean.

It's not that those things belong to me or even are generated in me. They belong to and originate from the enemy of my soul. You see, he hates me. He hates the fact that I received such great sustenance from the Lover of my soul on Sunday. He hates that I was encouraged in the Spirit and received new strength. He hates that, whatever plans he had for me last week, were washed away as I stood in the presence of my God. He hates that a feast for my soul was laid out for me right in front of him and that I ate and drank until I was overflowing with the blessings of the Lord.

So he was here to greet me this morning with his tired old tools that still work if we are not alert to his schemes. But I am alert and will have nothing to do with it. I know what he is up to and more importantly, I know that yesterday's experience with God is my same experience today.

Jesus does not occupy a temple. I do not have to go to a special place to meet with him. I do not have to have a priest mediate on my behalf. I don't need the trappings of a religious system to be in his presence. He is with me now, here, and I am with him now, seated on the right hand of the Father. All I have to do is turn to him, take his hand and begin my day.

The enemy used to trip me up on Monday mornings, when I was young and not yet wise in the Lord, when I did not know the Word. But now the Spirit has equipped me to walk all over the enemy's schemes because I know the Word:

But a time is coming, and it is already here! Even now the true worshipers are being led by the Spirit to worship the Father according to the truth. These are the ones the Father is seeking to worship him. God is Spirit, and those who worship God must be led by the Spirit to worship him according to the truth. (John 4:22-24) 

I am nothing without the Spirit. My job today is to remain sensitive to him. These are the Words of Jesus, who taught a great deal on the Spirit; teachings much of the Church overlooks. He also told us plainly:

I am one with them, and you are one with me, so that they may become completely one. Then this world’s people will know that you sent me. They will know that you love my followers as much as you love me. (John 17:23)

Jesus is in us and we are in him, and we are one. No wonder the enemy is so scared. No wonder he hates us so much. No wonder he will do whatever he can to convince us of his lies which are designed to trick us into leaving the oneness with Jesus.

Did you wake up to his greeting as well? Was the first thing you faced this morning a thing that washed you in discouragement? Don't let it turn into despair and then depression. Those are all tricks of the enemy of your soul. Instead, crank up the worship. Dance before the Lord and take your delight in him. Confess your trust in him and do it out loud. Put voice to your faith and put the enemy to flight. Drink deeply from the Word before you start your day. Renew what took place yesterday. Renew the teaching you received. Renew your love for the Lord.

Don't let the enemy have his way with you this morning. Put him in his place, which is under your feet. Have a glorious day in the Lord. Sing. Dance. Shout the name of Jesus so nothing else can possess your soul.

What Shapes Your Expectations?

Have you ever been disappointed? What a silly question. We have all been disappointed in people, situations and desires. Disappointment comes from expectations. We expect things to be a certain way or people to have a particular reaction and when it doesn't happen we are disappointed. Sometimes we allow these experiences to diminish our expectations. We start expecting less of people and of life. Subconsciously, or consciously, we figure the less the expectation the less our disappointment. It is tragic when we allow this in our relationship with Jesus.

As Christians we have faced many disappointments and often they were due to wrong expectations. We then allowed our experience to dictate what we expect from God and we lower those expectations. But we are never suppose to live according to experience or even desires. We are to live according to the promises of Jesus, the promises of our Father. His promises are not like any others. They were true yesterday, are true today and will be true tomorrow. These promises, many of which people do not know, were given in the context of a deep, loving relationship.

For many of us, we treat God's promises like a formula or a "genie in a bottle". We keep our relationship on the surface, read a bit of the Bible, worship a bit, put a few coins in the offering and expect to get whatever we want whenever we want it. But the promises were given to those God referred to as his children. Children have expectations of their parents that they don't even think about but exist within every day.

Children expect that there will be food at meal times. They expect a hug and a band-aide when they get hurt. They expect a bed to sleep in and walls to protect them from the storms. They expect to find clean clothes in their drawers. They expect a bedtime story and a warm embrace whenever they want it. They also expect correction whenever they do wrong, even though they hope not to get caught. Children don't think about these expectations because they happen in the context of a deep and growing relationship with their parents. This is the level of intimacy God desires with us and even more so. Jesus spoke of our connection:

Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it stays joined to the vine, you cannot produce fruit unless you stay joined to me. I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me. If you don’t stay joined to me, you will be thrown away. You will be like dry branches that are gathered up and burned in a fire. (John 14:4-6, CEV)

He spoke of the depth of our relationship:

I am not praying just for these followers. I am also praying for everyone else who will have faith because of what my followers will say about me. I want all of them to be one with each other, just as I am one with you and you are one with me. I also want them to be one with us. (John 17:20-21, CEV)

We are crazy stupid not to realize the level of relationship Jesus desires for us to have with God. It is in the deep relationship that we can begin to live within the promises at the same level as a child with his parents. A child does not say, "I don't expect there to be cereal for breakfast" in the hope of not being disappointed. The child goes to the cupboard with unspoken expectation of finding cereal there. I face my journey today with the expectation that my God will provide everything that I need. I expect it because he promised and my relationship is such that i trust what he tells me.

It is also in this depth of relationship that I understand the promises, God's purpose for me and the direction he is taking me. I walk in the joy and peace that he has given me and if I fail to do so it is a warning to me that I am letting go of the intimacy. If I fail to walk in the promises and face disappointed, it is not my Father's fault. It isn't because he failed in his promises but rather because I have failed in our relationship and expectation. If a child fails to look for the cereal in the cupboard it does not mean the parent failed to provide. If I choose worry and fear today, it doesn't mean my Father did not provide joy and peace.

All good gifts are from our Father and he never takes away what he has promised to give. It is we who fail with our low expectation, lack of knowledge of the promises, not receiving what has been freely given and in the depth of the relationship to which we have been called. And because we are this crazy stupid, God is not glorified in our lives and the world cannot see Jesus. Experience or promises: What shapes your expectations?

Letting Them See Jesus

The other day one of our regular customers came into the store. It was a Sunday and the church was meeting in the dinning area for worship service. I had stepped out of the service to get something and saw the customer at the counter speaking with my son, so I went over to greet him. He shook my hand briskly and promptly told me that he knew I was a real man of God. He then went on to explain that every time he sees me he sees an aura around me and it makes him glad. He then expressed his affection to my son and me for our ongoing kindness to him and he promptly left.

I am not under some illusion that I walk around with an aura but I understood what this man was trying to express. He sensed the presence of God and he described it in the only manner he knew how. I share this with you, not with the intention of "hey look at me", but as an example of what some people are able to see in us. Everyone can see it but many choose not too because if they acknowledged it they would also have to acknowledge the conviction of the Spirit, and that would provoke a decision.

I remind you today that your time on this earth is not about you seeking the blessings of a comfortable life. You are a vessel of the Holy Spirit, the only presence of God that some people will ever experience. Wherever you go, Jesus is right there with you, not just for your benefit but for the sake of a dying world. But, are our behaviour, words and actions putting up a screen so that others cannot see Jesus, only our unkindness?

Words matter. So do actions. So does attitude; as does love, forgiveness, mercy and grace. All the things that God has done for us, we are to do for others. That's what Jesus said. "Freely you have received; freely give." Jesus also told us something incredible in his prayer for us as he spoke to the Father on our behalf:

I am one with them, and you are one with me, so that they may become completely one. Then this world’s people will know that you sent me. They will know that you love my followers as much as you love me. (John 17:23, CEV)

It is the "aura" that people see, our oneness with Jesus and each other. They see him in our unity and compassion for people. They see him in our words and actions. They don't see the kindness and love of people. They can find that in any good, well meaning organization. I am talking about the actual presence of God, the anointing that comes through our being possessed by the Holy Spirit.

Anyone can perform acts of kindness, but when that kindness is offered in the authority of Jesus Christ, his presence is also felt, and there is power behind that action. We can do nothing apart from Jesus. That is what he told us. He told us we have to stay connected to the vine, and he is that vine, or we would dry up and be thrown into the fire. Acts of kindness amount to nothing if they are done apart from Jesus. We are not here to perform acts of kindness but to carry the presence of Jesus, so that others will see him in us; the kindness will be provoked in us by the Spirit of God in us. They need to see the "aura", the anointing, the power, the thing that sets us apart from this world. They need to see Jesus.

My friends, it is not about a written code or meeting certain expectations. It is not about being well thought of or accepted as a kind person in this world. It is about total surrender to the Spirit, walking in obedience, getting out of the way and allowing people to see Jesus. It is about Jesus being lifted up in us, being one with him so that only he is seen in us. May they see the "aura" in you today.